The latest season ofJersey Shore Family Vacationis being described as a milestone season, since it marks 15 years since the originalJersey Shorepremiered on MTV in 2009, therebyushering in a new era of debaucherous reality TVthat would put all of its unknown stars on the map.
While it’s great that the cast have remained mostly intact and on our TV screens today withJersey Shore’s predecessor,Jersey Shore Family Vacation, I have to admit thatI miss the old days of club Karma, fist-pumping, working at the Shore Store, random hook-ups, and even arreststhat made the originalJersey Shoreso entertaining.
Don’t get me wrong: I’mhappy theJersey Shorecast—Ronnie Magro, Mike “The Situation” Sorrentino, Vinny Guadagnino, Pauly “DJ Pauly D” DelVecchio, Sammi “Sweetheart” Giancola, Nicole “Snooki” Polizzi, Deena Cortese, Jenni “J-Woww” Farley, and Angelina Pivarnick—are happy and healthy now, 15 years after the show that changed their lives premiered.
Still, while I’m watching them as adults, working out together, talking about their mental health, and dealing with more mature issues like infertility, I can’t help but feel likethis new wholesome Jersey Shore doesn’t have the same energy.
I Miss Their Wild Jersey Shore Antics
Bring Back Mess
Of course, it’s natural thatthe original cast ofJersey Shorearen’t in the same place as they were back in the day. To be honest,it would be concerning if they were still out causing troubleon the streets of New Jersey like they did before.
Still, the magic that wasJersey Shorerelied on a few different factors:the cast were unknownswho had no idea how popular the show would become, and they were willing to push the envelope in ways only the youth can.
Fearless and given a huge platform, theJersey Shoregang, with their unusual clothing (leopard print and neon everything, plus sky-high hair) and unique language (“grenades,” “DTF,” “gym-tan-laundry,” to name a few words and phrases they coined),entertained fans for seasons on end.
America couldn’t get enough of these “guidos” and “guidettes.“Jersey Shorewas a cultural phenomenon.
We watched them fight, make up, make out, and then fight again. They traveled to Italy and Miami,keeping the party goingwherever they were.
But, as the cast grew more famous,they fell into the perils of major popularity: Mike served time in jail for tax evasion, andRonnie struggled with his sobriety, often making headlines for the wrong reasons.
MTV canceledJersey Shorein 2012, a mere three years after the show changed reality TV forever. For years, the cast sat quiet, waiting for their time to return to the spotlight. Some got married and had kids; others remained in the headlines. MTV gave them the opportunity to return in 2018, when they brought theshow back asJersey Shore Family Vacation.
The Jersey Shore Kids Have Grown Up
They’re Adulting Now
Now that they’re adults, and many have children of their own,it wouldn’t be feasible or realisticto try and bring them back inJersey Shore’s original iteration. Why would they all be living at a shore house for the summer as adults with their own partners and families?
The pivot that MTV made, showcasing their lives as adults, and putting them in various vacation destinations together, worked for a while.
Now, the show feels very produced and still somewhat unrealistic. Why are they all working on a farm, picking fresh eggs and learning how to rope a steer?Couldn’t tell you.
I understand that the producers need to make a TV show, and watching them as they go about their adult lives, separate from each other, is hardly compelling, but putting them in staged scenarios isn’t working either. It’s impossible to recapture the magic of the originalJersey Shore, andit feels strange that we’re still trying, 15 years later.
They’re Still A Jersey Shore Family
Their Bond Is Real
In theJersey Shore Family Vacationseason 8trailer, Jenni describes the bond between the cast of the originalJersey Shoreas “unbreakable.” And she’s not wrong. Without each other, they failed to find the level of fame they had as a unit.Sticking together has served them well.
I’m not sure what the solution is. I can’t help but think thatrebooting the originalJersey Shorewith a fresh cast still wouldn’t hold the same appeal as the original show. The original cast was lightning in a bottle for that era, and I’m not sure we can ever get back to that.
Ultimately, I think the cast ofJersey Shoreare like the friends you spent your carefree 20s with, before the realities of the real world came crashing down. You have fond memories of your time together, and you are glad that everyone’s healthy and happy now, butyou don’t need to see them every week. It’s all a part of growing up and moving on, even at the Jersey shore.
Jersey Shore Family Vacationseason 8 airs Jerzdays (or Thursdays) on MTV.
